


uncommonly rare, very unique

by preciousthings



Category: Hockey RPF
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Theatre, Getting Together, Imagine Mat in a headset, M/M, Tito in dance pants is very important to me
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-12
Updated: 2018-03-12
Packaged: 2019-03-29 10:22:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,039
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13925145
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/preciousthings/pseuds/preciousthings
Summary: So, Tito’s pretty sure he wasn’t supposed to fall for his stage manager.(or: what they did for love)





	uncommonly rare, very unique

**Author's Note:**

> if you or anyone you know is mentioned by name, please click out now and get yourself a drink to forget this ever happened!
> 
> this fic wouldn't exist without twitter, or specifically without lotts, who talked about tito as a newsie, and s, who continued the conversation with us. i worked on a chorus line last semester, and some of those experiences inspired this fic, because they're doing _a chorus line_! hockey is my first love, but musical theater is a close second, so i had a ton of fun getting to combine the two of those things. the title comes from "one", the finale in _a chorus line_.
> 
> thank you to ali for reading this when it was unfinished, and lotts for reading this when it was finished, grammar-checking, and cheerleading <3

So, Tito’s pretty sure he wasn’t supposed to fall for his stage manager. 

It’s probably the biggest problem in his life, but it shouldn’t be a thing at all. His biggest problem should be like, literally anything else. 

Tito is in a different program than Mat, but he’s been involved in every show Tito has done since their freshman year. He’s worked his way up from assistant stage manager as a freshman to Cal’s go-to stage manager now, as a junior. He’s never taken anyone’s shit, and Tito appreciates that, despite how terrifying it is to be on the receiving end when Mat is pissed about something. He isn’t afraid to call people out, but all that does it make Tito want to be a little bit better, so maybe he doesn’t have to piss Mat off again. 

All of that being said, he’s really great at what he does. 

Tito isn’t like, hot for his stage management skills, or anything, it’s just—yeah. He’s also  _ unfairly _ good looking, even when he’s barely slept, half the cast is testing his patience, and his ASM keeps fucking off with a stagehand—a normal rehearsal for him. Tito wishes this whole crush thing would’ve been gradual and something he saw coming, except it fucking blindsided him at the absolute worst time. 

This semester, it’s  _ A Chorus Line, _ and Tito is playing Mike, so he has a tap solo and stuff. It’s cool, and it’s been a lot of fun so far, but sometimes Tito can feel Mat’s eyes on him after the song, when he’s standing there, fully in the light, yelling about being called twinkle toes as a kid, like he and Mat are the only people in the theater.  

He’s dealing with it as well as can be expected. 

  
  


 

Tito gets to the theater a few hours before rehearsal is actually supposed to start, a combination of wanting to work on some stuff on his own and his roommate sexiling him in the middle of the fucking day. There’s a member of the costume crew in the lobby, and it’s very obvious she had been crying, which just  _ feels _ bad. Tito isn’t even sure he wants to go into the actual theater, but his curiosity outweighs the desire to stay out of drama.

The drama, it turns out, has to do with him. Sort of. 

When Cal explains it, it actually makes a lot of sense to Tito, but Cal is pissed off, so Tito won’t even try to reason with him. He does manage to convince Cal that he should go home, or to his office, or anywhere that isn’t the theater until rehearsal starts to cool off. 

With the theater finally cleared out, Tito stretches before he gets to work on his song in jazz shoes instead of tap shoes, the result of the fight earlier between Cal, the student dramaturg, and that poor costume crew member. 

He just focuses on the dance section at first, trying to get used to the feel of tapping without actually wearing taps. He runs it so many times he loses count, but his body is feeling the burn from the constant repetition. It’s really fucking cool dancing on an empty stage, in an empty theater. He’s going all out for no one but himself, and it is  _ so fucking satisfying _ . 

He takes a short break to catch his breath, take a sip of water, and reply to a few texts before he jumps right back in, except he starts doing the full song now, singing the lyrics quietly as he dances. He gets really into it, so into it that he doesn’t even notice Mat had walked out of the booth and down into the house. He doesn’t see Mat until he finishes running the song, and Mat is standing downstage left, watching him. Tito is panting, trying to catch his breath, and Mat is applauding him. 

“Hey,” Tito says. He sits down on the stage, taking a long sip from his water bottle. 

“Hi,” Mat says. He crosses the stage and sits down in front of Tito. “I figured if you didn’t take a break, you were going to dance yourself to death before rehearsal actually starts.” 

“So responsible,” Tito laughs.

“Just doing my job, y’know, making sure everyone opens and closes the show alive and in one piece,” Mat says. 

They fall into a comfortable silence, until Mat speaks up again. “You, uh, you looked really good,” he pauses. “Dancing—I mean. You looked really good dancing!” 

“How long were you watching me dance for?” Tito smiles, and hopes the lights on stage are masking the deep blush creeping up on his cheeks. 

“I was in the booth the entire time,” Mat says.

“You didn’t have to hide in there,” Tito says. “I wouldn’t have minded you sitting out here.”

“I was kind of—hiding from Cal? He was mad and people cried and I just didn’t want to get in the middle of that?” 

“It was about me,” Tito says, “Or, like, about Mike. Cal got into a fight with a dramaturg and a costume crew member about me wearing tap shoes, but the dramaturg won and now i’m tapping in jazz shoes.” 

“So that’s what this pre-rehearsal rehearsal was, then?” Mat asks. 

“Mainly, yeah. I was going to focus on something else, but then this happened, so,” Tito shrugs. “I think I’m done dancing until rehearsal, but if you wouldn’t mind running lines, I literally have that one scene…”

“Yeah, dude, I got you,” Mat says, and Tito slides his script over. Mat picks it up and flips to the right page. “Page 17, Zach’s line—‘Okay, Mike, I’ll start with you,’ and through the song?” 

Tito nods, and Mat begins, saying the first line again, and from there it’s just easy. 

  
  


 

The week leading up to tech is tense, always is. And if it’s like this now, Tito doesn’t want to know what tech week is going to be like. Nothing has really fallen apart, per se, but Tito wishes he never had to hear Cal scream at the line that they aren’t emoting enough again. It’s just little things at this point, but frustrating little things. 

And if Tito is frustrated as someone standing on the line, he can’t even imagine how Mat is doing. He sees him running around backstage with his headset on, this permanent stressed-out look going on. He’s talking to Jake, who hasn’t shown up on time all week, and he looks like he’s 5 seconds away from completely losing it. Tito considers hanging back to talk to Mat, but figures he’s better off in places five minutes early to stay on Mat’s good side. 

Rehearsal itself is fine, but every inch of Tito’s body aches after running the “One” rehearsal scene for over an hour continuously. He’s really looking forward to a hot shower and his bed, but impulsivity gets the better of him on his way out of the theater building. Mat is sitting on a bench in the lobby putting stuff into his backpack, and Tito sits down next to him. 

“Tito,” Mat sighs, not even looking up. “I don’t—”

“Get food with me, okay?” Tito says. 

“Go to bed, Tito,” Mat says, and it doesn’t really have much of an edge to it. He just sounds tired. 

“You can’t let your actors starve, Mathew,” Tito says, and he swears he sees the corners of Mat’s mouth quirk up. 

“Fine,” Mat says. He looks up and he is smiling. “Lets go before I change my mind.” 

They just go across campus, to the only place that’s open late. They order, get their food, and sit down, before Tito says, “We don’t have to talk about the show, or we can. It’s up to you.” 

Mat shrugs, picks a fry off of Tito’s plate and eats it, despite saying he didn’t want fries not even ten minutes ago.

“You can, like, rant as much as you want to me,” Tito continues. “I’m not gonna tell anyone what you say here. I’m not like that.”

Mat, without a second thought, it seems, launches into what borders a rant about tonight, and the past week, and his ASM, and how he feels like Cal keeps dumping more and more on him with two weeks until opening. He’s frustrated, and swamped with work, but feels guilty thinking that because he’s still having so much fun. Tito can’t do anything but listen, and he’s always been told he’s a pretty good listener. 

By the time he’s done, over half of the fries on Tito’s plate are gone, but the stress in Mat’s face and the tension in his shoulders disappeared, so Tito takes that as a win. 

“I’m done,” Mat says, “But I just wanted to tell you that ‘I Can Do That’ was, like, one of the best you’ve ever done tonight.” 

Tito blushes, unable to help it from happening. “Thanks. It’s—I’ve been working really hard on it.” 

“I know,” Mat says. “I watch it every night.”

“Thank you, that means a lot. But no more show talk now,” Tito says, and Mat nods, agreeing. 

They talk about random stuff—their hometowns, musicals they love and hate, stuff they do outside of the theater, and next semester’s shows—for over an hour after that. Tito learns a lot about Mat; he played hockey in high school and still did theater, and still has friends who play. He gets really excited talking about hockey, Tito notices. It’s the same excitement he  _ exudes _ when he talks about working on _ Into The Woods _ last fall. He’s so passionate about this. 

It’s funny, how Tito sees Mat almost every day, and has for the past two years, but it’s taken them this long to actually get to know each other. They’ve gotten closer during rehearsals, but tonight was new for them. Tito and Mat both opening up about things they previously hadn’t with each other, and its—nice. Really nice, actually. 

They both lose track of time, until suddenly it’s almost 1 a.m. and Tito definitely has a class at 8. They leave together, but when Tito expects Mat to go to his car, he just keeps walking.

“Aren’t you parked over here?” Tito asks. 

“Yeah,” Mat says. “I’m walking you back to your dorm first.”

“But—”

“No, I don’t want to hear it,” Mat laughs. “I’m doing my job, alright? Making sure my actors stay alive and in one piece.”

Tito nods, and lets it happen. He’s pretty sure the part where Mat laces their fingers together as they walk isn’t part of his job, but it’s definitely happening now, and Tito isn’t one to complain about this. 

When they get to Tito’s building, he swears Mat almost leans in.

He would have kissed back, if Mat did. 

Tito isn’t the type to dwell, but he thinks about it, and about Mat, all night. 

  
  


 

The next night when Tito finishes a late costume fitting, Josh, the sound board op, is sitting in the guys’ dressing room re-organizing the body mics when he gets back. Tito drops down into the chair in front of his counter space.

“So, I was talking to Mat,” Josh says.

“Hello to you too, Josh.” Tito rolls his eyes.

“Anyway, I was talking to Mat,” Josh says. “Sounds like you two went on a date last night.”

“Did Mat tell you that?” Tito asks, doing his best to keep a straight face.  

“He said you guys got dinner after rehearsal last night.”

“And your mind automatically connected that to it being a date,” Tito says. 

“He, like, never shuts up about you, dude, when we’re at home  _ and _ in the booth. I just,” Josh shrugs. “Figured he finally got the balls to ask you out.”

“I, uh, I asked him?” Tito says, and quickly realizes what that must sound like to Josh. “But I promise you it wasn’t a date.”

Josh nods, like he’s trying to understand that. “So you don’t like him like that?”

Tito pauses, because. Because  _ like that _ implies that Mat feels a certain way that’s probably a lot less platonic than Tito should be aware of.

“Oh, fuck,” Josh says. “Fuck, pretend I didn’t say that.”

“I do like him like that,” Tito says, and he’s saying it out loud for the first time. It’s like, an actual, real thing now, and not just something that exists in Tito’s head only. “I wanted to wait until we closed.”

“You didn’t hear this from me, but he’ll be really happy,” Josh says, smiling. 

“Yeah? I think—I’ll be really happy too,” Tito blushes and looks down, so maybe Josh won’t see it. 

“Hey, are you jealous of all the time I get to spend with him in a dark booth?” When Tito looks up, Josh is wiggling his eyebrows.

“We’re not making this into a  _ thing _ ,” Tito sighs, overdramatic and completely unnecessary, but somehow so necessary for this moment. 

“Too late, it’s already a thing.” 

“Please don’t say anything to Mat. I know you live with him and stuff, but please,” Tito says.

“What happens in the guys’ dressing room, stays in the guys’ dressing room,” Josh says, and he reaches out to give Tito a fistbump. 

Tito keeps going over that conversation with Josh in his head as he walks back to his dorm. Mat—he feels the same way. Something could happen, and maybe Tito wasn’t imagining the way Mat had leaned in, just a little bit, last night. Maybe that was almost something more. Whatever it is has to be enough for now, because the last thing either of them need right now is a new relationship with less than two weeks to opening night. 

  
  


 

After that, Tito really only sees Mat in the theater, but it’s also tech, so he spends approximately all of his waking hours in the theater. It’s a lot of time together, but not a lot of time  _ together _ . They haven’t really had a conversation longer than 3 minutes since their late night dinner. And now they’re finally at opening night. Tito is walking around backstage early with earbuds  in, trying to get warmed up on his own before the full company warms up together on stage. He’s in costume, rolling his shoulders as he paces behind the set.

His head is down, so he doesn’t see Mat walking in his direction until he literally collides with Mat. Mat ends up actually falling, a combination of being caught off guard by Tito and losing his balance. 

Tito pulls an earbud out of his ear, and reaches out to help Mat up. Mat takes his hand and stands up. 

“Sorry about that,” Tito smiles sheepishly. 

“You’re good,” Mat says. “I was zoned out too.”

They stand there for a few seconds before Mat speaks again. “You look really good. The costume, and stuff, it’s, uh—tight.”

Mat literally just turns around and walks back toward the booth. Tito is pretty sure he’s at least mildly embarrassed, so he doesn’t see the point in going after him. 

Tito is trying really hard to not think about this. He has a show to open. 

They can talk later, if anything. 

  
  


 

The lights fade to black, and Tito finishes the kickline strong, and that’s—That’s it. 

They did it, and they were  _ so good _ , and now they’re closed. He’s breathing hard in his spot on the line, standing in the dark and taking in the applause. 

As soon as they’re backstage, Mitch pulls Tito into a hug. “Killed it, dude,” he mumbles. 

“You too,” Tito smiles. He must hug every person in the cast after that, and it’s so bittersweet, to be ending this chapter that he’s gained so much from. Everyone gathers on stage once they’re out of their costumes and the house is empty for one last talk from Cal, and Mat is there, on the other side of the stage. Tito doesn’t miss the way Mat keeps looking at him, leading. 

When everyone goes their separate ways, Mat goes into the prop shop and Tito goes back to the dressing room. They’re striking tomorrow, but he starts to pack up his stuff now, so he doesn’t have to do it hungover. He puts his costume back in the costume shop for the last time, and can’t help but feel like he might miss the mustard yellow t-shirt he wore as Mike. Just a little bit. 

Once he’s back in the dressing room, he takes a second to post a few cast pictures on Instagram, and suddenly he’s the last one there, with Mitch on his way out. 

“I’ll see you at the cast party,” Mitch says, and then he pops his head back into the dressing room, “Someone’s waiting out here for you.” 

“One sec,” Tito says. He pulls his backpack on and shuts the lights in the dressing room off. Mat is waiting for him in the wings. It’s the first time since tech started that Mat isn’t wearing his headset.

“Congrats,” Mat smiles. 

“You too,” Tito says. There’s something between them, that Tito can’t put his finger on, but it feels off.

“Are you going to the cast party?” Mat asks. 

Tito nods. “I’d ask if you are, but it’s at your house, so I’m going to make an informed assumption.” 

“Look at you, Detective Tito,” Mat smirks, and the tension between them settles. “I’ve really liked getting to know you more,” he continues. 

“Me too.” Tito takes a deep breath, and it feels like they’re on the brink of something here; so close, about to jump off the deep end and just go for it. 

“I think,” Mat says, and pauses. “I think I’d like to keep getting to know you.”

“I think I’d like that, too.” 

And then Mat is kissing Tito, his hands on either side of Tito’s hips, pulling him closer. It feels like—the perfect ending, an act two finale, applause after a solo, a standing ovation. All of that, but better, because this isn’t a musical, this is Tito’s  _ life _ , and he gets to have this long after closing night.

**Author's Note:**

> untagged characters: mitch marner, jake virtanen, cal clutterbuck  
> not mentioned by name, but still mentioned: mikey mcleod and nathan bastian
> 
> fun stuff:  
> \- this au is a lot more involved than i was able to include in this fic. for starters, jake virtanen and mitch marner, who were mentioned, play al and mark, respectively. josh, as mentioned is the sound board op. connor mcdavid is the show's lighting designer, but he also doesn't trust anyone to operate the board, so he does that too. mat's ASM is mikey mcleod, the stagehand he keeps fucking off with is nathan bastian. cal clutterbuck, as mentioned, is the show's director, and john tavares (who cal may or may not be in a relationship with, we are all as unsure as tito and the cast of ACL is) is the show's technical director. 
> 
> \- the fight between cal, the dramaturg, and costume crew, is actually based in something factually accurate about _a chorus line_. the character tito plays, mike, has a tap solo that is never supposed to be performed in tap shoes, but the cast recording has tap sounds. cal was insisting tito wore tap shoes, but the dramaturg was like "it's what michael bennett intended, cal. don't do this to michael bennett." (sidenote: for those who aren't entirely sure, a dramaturg is essentially an advisor on the production team who advocates for the script, among other things like creating educational materials and helping actors understand their characters! we're really fun people!)
> 
> \- mat totally had a troy bolton-esque crisis in high school on whether he should continue with theater or hockey. theater won, but he still plays shinny whenever he can.
> 
> \- i mentioned _into the woods_ : in that, tito played rapunzel's prince (thanks lotts!)
> 
> \- [twitter!](https://twitter.com/matbarzaI)


End file.
